Imaging system

ABSTRACT

There are disclosed imaging members wherein a chemical compound in a crystalline form is converted, at least partially, and preferably substantially completely or completely, to a liquid in the amorphous form, the liquid having intrinsically a different color from the crystalline form. Also described are imaging methods utilizing the imaging members. The conversion of the compound from the crystalline form to the liquid form can be effected by the application of thermal energy or by other imaging techniques.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No.60/451,208, filed Feb. 28, 2003.

This application is related to the following commonly assigned, UnitedStates patent applications and patents, the entire disclosures of whichare hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety:

United States patent application serial no. ______, filed on even dateherewith (Attorney Docket No. C-8586AFP);

United States patent application serial no. ______, filed on even dateherewith (Attorney Docket No. 8587AFP);

United States patent application serial no. ______, filed on even dateherewith (Attorney Docket No. 8588AFP);

United States patent application serial no. ______, filed on even dateherewith (Attorney Docket No. 8589AFP);

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/151,432, filed May 20, 2002 (UnitedStates Patent Application Publication No. US2003/0125206 A1); and

U.S. Pat. No. 6,537,410 B2.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to imaging members, imaging methods for formingan image and a method for manufacturing a thermal imaging member and,more particularly, to imaging members and methods wherein formation ofan image occurs when a chemical compound in a crystalline form isconverted, at least partially, to a liquid, or amorphous, form, theliquid having intrinsically a different color from the crystalline form.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The development of thermal print heads (linear arrays ofindividually-addressable resistors) has led to the development of a widevariety of thermally-sensitive media. In some of these, known as“thermal transfer” systems, heat is used to move colored material from adonor sheet to a receiver sheet. Alternatively, heat may be used toconvert a colorless coating on a single sheet into a colored image, in aprocess known as “direct thermal” imaging. Direct thermal imaging hasthe advantage over thermal transfer of the simplicity of a single sheet.On the other hand, unless a fixing step is incorporated, direct thermalsystems are still sensitive to heat after thermal printing. If a stableimage is needed from an unfixed direct thermal system, the temperaturefor coloration must be higher than any temperature that the image islikely to encounter during normal use. A problem arises in that thehigher the temperature for coloration, the less sensitive the mediumwill be when printed with the thermal print head. High sensitivity isimportant for maximum speed of printing, for maximizing the longevity ofthe print head, and for energy conservation in mobile, battery-poweredprinters. As described in more detail below, maximizing sensitivitywhile maintaining stability is more easily achieved if the temperatureof coloration of a direct thermal medium is substantially independent ofthe heating time.

Thermal print heads address one line of the image at a time. Forreasonable printing times, each line of the image is heated for aboutten milliseconds or less. Storage of the medium (prior to printing or inthe form of the final image) may need to be for years, however. Thus,for high imaging sensitivity, a high degree of coloration is required ina short time of heating, while for good stability a low degree ofcoloration is required for a long time of heating.

Most chemical reactions speed up with increasing temperature. Therefore,the temperature required for coloration in the short heating timeavailable from a thermal print head will normally be higher than thetemperature needed to cause coloration during the long storage time.Actually reversing this order of temperatures would be a very difficulttask, but maintaining a substantially time-independent temperature ofcoloration, such that both long-time and short-time temperatures forcoloration are substantially the same, is a desirable goal that isachieved by the present invention.

There are other reasons why a time-independent coloration temperaturemay be desirable. It may, for example, be required to perform a secondthermal step, requiring a relatively long time of heating, afterprinting. An example of such a step would be thermal lamination of animage. The temperature of coloration of the medium during the timerequired for thermal lamination must be higher than the laminationtemperature (otherwise the medium would become colorized duringlamination). It would be preferred that the imaging temperature behigher than the lamination temperature by as small a margin as possible,as would be the case for time-independent temperature of coloration.

Finally, the imaging system may comprise more than one color-forminglayer and be designed to be printed with a single thermal print-head, asdescribed in the above-mentioned patent application Ser. No. 10/151,432.In one embodiment of the imaging system, the topmost color-forming layerforms color in a relatively short time at a relatively high temperature,while the lower layer or layers form color in a relatively long time ata relatively low temperature. An ideal topmost layer for this type ofdirect thermal imaging system would have time-independent temperature ofcoloration.

Prior art direct thermal imaging systems have used several differentchemical mechanisms to produce a change in color. Some have employedcompounds that are intrinsically unstable, and which decompose to form avisible color when heated. Such color changes may involve a unimolecularchemical reaction. This reaction may cause color to be formed from acolorless precursor, the color of a colored material to change, or acolored material to bleach. The rate of the reaction is accelerated byheat. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,488,705 discloses thermally unstableorganic acid salts of triarylmethane dyes that are decomposed andbleached upon heating. U.S. Pat. No. 3,745,009 reissued as U.S. ReissuePatent No. 29,168 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,832,212 disclose heat-sensitivecompounds for thermography containing a heterocyclic nitrogen atomsubstituted with an—OR group, for example, a carbonate group, thatdecolorize by undergoing homolytic or heterolytic cleavage of thenitrogen-oxygen bond upon heating to produce an RO+ ion or RO′ radicaland a dye base or dye radical which may in part fragment further. U.S.Pat. No. 4,380,629 discloses styryl-like compounds that undergocoloration or bleaching, reversibly or irreversibly, via ring-openingand ring-closing in response to activating energies. U.S. Pat. No.4,720,449 describes an intramolecular acylation reaction that converts acolorless molecule to a colored form. U.S. Pat. No. 4,243,052 describespyrolysis of a mixed carbonate of a quinophthalone precursor that may beused to form a dye. U.S. Pat. No. 4,602,263 describes athermally-removable protecting group that may be used to reveal a dye orto change the color of a dye. U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,870 describes anintramolecular acylation reaction that may be used to induce a colorchange. A further example of a unimolecular color-forming reaction isdescribed in “New Thermo-Response Dyes: Coloration by the ClaisenRearrangement and Intramolecular Acid-Base Reaction Masahiko Inouye,Kikuo Tsuchiya, and Teijiro Kitao, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 31, pp.204-5 (1992).

In all of the above-mentioned examples, control of the chemical reactionis achieved through the change in rate that occurs with changingtemperature. Thermally-induced changes in rates of chemical reactions inthe absence of phase changes may often be approximated by the Arrheniusequation, in which the rate constant increases exponentially as thereciprocal of absolute temperature decreases (i.e., as temperatureincreases). The slope of the straight line relating the logarithm of therate constant to the reciprocal of the absolute temperature isproportional to the so-called “activation energy”. The prior artcompounds described above are coated in an amorphous state prior toimaging, and thus no change in phase is expected or described asoccurring between room temperature and the imaging temperature. Thus, asemployed in the prior art, these compounds exhibit stronglytime-dependent coloration temperatures. Some of these prior artcompounds are described as having been isolated in crystalline form.Nevertheless, in no case is there mentioned in this prior art any changein activation energy of the color-forming reaction that may occur whencrystals of the compounds are melted.

Other prior art thermal imaging media depend upon melting to triggerimage formation. Typically, two or more chemical compounds that reacttogether to produce a color change are coated onto a substrate in such away that they are segregated from one another, for example, asdispersions of small crystals. Melting, either of the compoundsthemselves or of an additional fusible vehicle, brings them into contactwith one another and causes a visible image to be formed. For example, acolorless dye precursor may form color upon heat-induced contact with areagent. This reagent may be a Bronsted acid, as described in “ImagingProcesses and Materials”, Neblette's Eighth Edition, J. Sturge, V.Walworth, A. Shepp, Eds., Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1989, pp. 274-275, or aLewis acid, as described for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,636,819.Suitable dye precursors for use with acidic reagents are described, forexample, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,417,897, South African Patent 68-00170,South African Patent 68-00323 and Ger. Offenlegungschrift 2,259,409.Further examples of such dyes may be found in “Synthesis and Propertiesof Phthalide-type Color Formers”, by Ina Fletcher and Rudolf Zink, in“Chemistry and Applications of Leuco Dyes”, Muthyala Ed., Plenum Press,New York, 1997. The acidic material may for example be a phenolderivative or an aromatic carboxylic acid derivative. Such thermalimaging materials and various combinations thereof are now well known,and various methods of preparing heat-sensitive recording elementsemploying these materials also are well known and have been described,for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,539,375, 4,401,717 and 4,415,633.

Prior art systems in which at least two separate components are mixedfollowing a melting transition suffer from the drawback that thetemperature required to form an image in a very short time by a thermalprint-head may be substantially higher than the temperature required tocolorize the medium during longer periods of heating. This difference iscaused by the change in the rate of the diffusion needed to mix themolten components together, which may become limiting when heat isapplied for very short periods. The temperature may need to be raisedwell above the melting points of the individual components to overcomethis slow rate of diffusion. Diffusion rates may not be limiting duringlong periods of heating, however, and the temperature at whichcoloration takes place in these cases may actually be less than themelting point of either individual component, occurring at the eutecticmelting point of the mixture of crystalline materials.

Despite the many prior art examples of direct thermal imaging systems,therefore, there are none in which the temperature of image formation issubstantially time-independent. In particular, there has not previouslybeen described a method for producing an image in which a crystallinechemical compound is converted to a liquid, or amorphous, form, theliquid form having intrinsically a different color from the crystallineform.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a novel imagingmethod.

Another object of the invention is to provide a thermal imaging methodwherein the temperature at which an image is formed is time independent.

It is another object to provide an imaging method wherein an image isformed by converting a solid chemical compound in the crystalline form,at least partially, to a liquid in the amorphous form.

Still another object is to provide a multicolor thermal imaging methodwherein at least one color separation image is formed by converting asolid chemical compound in the crystalline form at least partially to aliquid in the amorphous form.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide novel imaging members.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method for themanufacture of a direct thermal imaging member.

According to one aspect of the invention there are provided imagingmethods wherein a chemical compound in a crystalline form is converted,at least partially, and preferably substantially completely orcompletely, to a liquid in the amorphous form, the liquid havingintrinsically a different color from the crystalline form. Theconversion to the liquid form can be carried out by applying heat to thethermal imaging member by any of the techniques known in thermal imagingsuch as from a thermal print head, a laser, a heated stylus, etc. Inanother embodiment, the conversion to the liquid form may be effected byapplying a solvent ink jet for the crystalline solid such as from animaging apparatus to at least partially dissolve the crystallinematerial. In another embodiment, one or more thermal solvents, which arecrystalline materials, can be incorporated in the thermal imagingmember. The crystalline thermal solvent(s), upon being heated, melt anddissolve or liquefy, and thereby convert, at least partially, thecrystalline image-forming material to the liquid amorphous form to formthe image.

The conversion of the crystalline form to the liquid or amorphous formupon heating or dissolving the crystalline compounds of the presentinvention may produce a material of high or low viscosity. Typically,liquid or amorphous materials with viscosities higher than 10ˆ12 Pa.sare referred to as glasses. It may be that melting of the crystallineform produces a free-flowing liquid that, upon cooling, becomes a glass.The temperature at which the viscosity reaches 10ˆ12 Pa.s upon coolingis referred to as the glass transition temperature, or Tg. In order toform an image having a desirable degree of stability, it is preferredthat recrystallization of the liquid or amorphous form into thecrystalline form not occur. It is more likely that recrystallizationwill be slow when the liquid or amorphous form is a glass, i.e., at atemperature below its Tg. For this reason it is preferred that the Tg ofthe liquid or amorphous form of the compounds of the present inventionbe substantially above room temperature. Preferred Tg's are about 50° C.or greater

In another aspect of the invention there are provided novel thermalimaging members. The thermal imaging members of the invention generallycomprise a substrate carrying at least one image-forming layer includinga compound in the crystalline form, which can be converted, as describedpreviously, at least partially to a liquid in the amorphous form, theliquid having intrinsically a different color from the crystalline form.The thermal imaging member may be monochrome or multicolor and thetemperature at which an image is formed in at least one of theimage-forming layers is time independent.

The multicolor thermal imaging members of the invention may include atleast one image-forming layer including a compound in the crystallineform, which can be converted, as described previously, at leastpartially to a liquid in the amorphous form, the liquid havingintrinsically a different color from the crystalline form and at leastone image-forming layer including materials which form a color by adifferent mechanism.

Preferred thermal imaging members according to the invention are thosehaving the structures described in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No.6,537,410 B2, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety and made a part of this application.

Other preferred thermal imaging members are those having the structuresdescribed in prior, co-pending commonly assigned U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/151,432 filed May 20, 2002 (Patent Application PublicationNo. US2003/0125206) which is hereby incorporated herein by reference inits entirety and made a part of this application.

Further preferred thermal imaging members are those having thestructures described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,054,246 which is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety and made a part of thisapplication.

In another aspect of the invention there is provided a method formanufacturing the thermal imaging members of the invention. Generally,the method includes the steps of forming a dispersion of the crystallinesolid and optionally a binder, in a solvent in which the compound isinsoluble or only sparingly soluble by any suitable method such as bygrinding, attriting, etc. and forming a layer of the image-formingmaterial on a substrate by any suitable method such as, for example, bycoating the fluid onto the substrate using any of the techniqueswell-known in the coating art. These include slot, gravure, Mayer rod,roll, cascade, spray, and curtain coating techniques. The image-forminglayer so formed is optionally overcoated with a protective layer orlayers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the invention as well as other objects andadvantages and further features thereof, reference is made to thefollowing detailed description of various preferred embodiments thereoftaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates two different chemical mechanisms, Types I and II, bywhich images can be formed according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a proton transfer equilibrium characteristic ofmaterials which undergo the Type I mechanism shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 illustrates a chemical mechanism characteristic of materialswhich undergo the Type II mechanism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Compounds in the crystalline state commonly have properties, includingcolor, that are very different from those of the same compounds in anamorphous form. In a crystal, a molecule is typically held in a singleconformation (or, more rarely, in a small number of conformations) bythe packing forces of the lattice. Likewise, if a molecule can exist inmore than one interconverting isomeric forms, only one of such isomericforms is commonly present in the crystalline state. In amorphous form orsolution, on the other hand, the compound may explore its wholeconformational and isomeric space, and only a small proportion of thepopulation of individual molecules of the compound may at any one timeexhibit the particular conformation or isomeric form adopted in thecrystal. These phenomena are exploited in three similar ways in thecompositions, imaging methods and imaging members of the presentinvention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there are seen two types of chemical equilibriawhich are exploited according to the present invention, designated TypesI and II. The first type takes advantage of the fact that certain dyemolecules exhibit tautomerism in solution (i.e., they exist asdifferent, interconverting isomers at equilibrium). This is shown inFIG. 1, Type I, as the equilibrium between interconverting chemicalentities A and B. Only two chemical species are shown in FIG. 1, Type I,but this is for the sake of simplicity only, and is not intended tolimit the scope of invention in any way. The discussion provided hereinapplies equally to any number of interconverting tautomers. In thecrystalline state, as described above, only one of the possibletautomeric forms will usually be present. Thus, crystallization of themixture of A and B can produce crystals of pure A, or pure B, dependingupon the conditions used.

Different tautomers may have different electronic structures from oneanother, and therefore different absorption of electromagneticradiation. It is not unusual, therefore, for different tautomers to havedifferent colors. The equilibrium distribution of tautomers will dependupon the polarity of the medium in which they are dissolved. Thus, apolar tautomer will be favored in a polar medium, while a less polartautomer will be favored in a less polar medium. If a dye moleculeexhibiting tautomerism can be crystallized into a single tautomericform, the crystalline state will exhibit the color of that particulartautomer. If such a crystalline form is heated and converted to theliquid form or dissolved in a solvent, the tautomeric equilibrium willbe re-established, so that at least some of the tautomer or tautomersnot present in the crystal will be present, in relative amountsdependent upon the polarity of the molten state or solution. Sincecontributions from tautomers not present in the crystal will be seen,the color of the melt or solution is likely to be different from that ofthe crystal.

According to the invention, there have been identified moleculesexhibiting tautomerism in which at least one tautomeric form iscolorless, and at least another tautomeric form is colored. This isrepresented in FIG. 1, Type I, provided that molecule A is colorless,and molecule B is colored. Crystallization of the equilibrating mixtureof A and B is carried out so as to produce colorless crystals of pure A.The solvent chosen to perform the crystallization will typically be oneof such polarity (and other chemical properties, such ashydrogen-bonding ability) that A is favored, either in the equilibriumbetween A and B in solution, or in having lower solubility in thesolvent than B. The choice of solvent is usually determined empiricallyfor a particular mixture of tautomers.

Upon conversion of the pure crystalline A, the equilibrium betweentautomers A and B is re-established in the resulting amorphous (liquid)phase. The proportion of the amorphous material that is colored (i.e.,the proportion that is in the B tautomeric form) may vary, but ispreferably at least about 10%.

The colored and colorless tautomeric forms of the molecules of thepresent invention must meet certain criteria for image quality andpermanence. The colorless form, which it is preferred be the crystallineform, should have minimal visible absorption. It should be stable tolight, heating below the melting point, humidity, and otherenvironmental factors such as ozone, oxygen, nitrogen oxides,fingerprint oils, etc. These environmental factors are well known tothose skilled in the imaging art. The colored, amorphous form should bestable also to the above mentioned conditions, and in addition shouldnot recrystallize to the colorless form under normal handling conditionsof the image. The colored form should have a spectral absorptionappropriate for digital color rendition. Typically, the colored formshould be yellow (blue-absorbing), magenta (green-absorbing), cyan (redabsorbing), or black, without undue absorption in an unintended spectralregion. For nonphotographic applications, however, it may be requiredthat the colored form not be one of the subtractive primary colors, butrather a particular spot color (for example, orange, blue, etc.).

The thermal imaging members of the invention can be direct thermalimaging members wherein an image is formed in the member itself or theycan be thermal transfer imaging members whereby image-forming materialis transferred to an image-receiving member. The melting point of themolecules used in direct thermal imaging members of the presentinvention is preferably in the range of about 60° C. to about 300° C.Melting points lower than about 60° C. lead to direct thermal imagingmembers that are unstable to temperatures occasionally encounteredduring handling of the members before or after imaging, while meltingtemperatures above about 300° C. render the compounds difficult tocolorize with a conventional thermal print head. It should be noted,however, that there are uses for certain novel compounds of the presentinvention that do not require the use of thermal print heads (forexample, laser imaging).

The multicolor thermal imaging members of the invention include thosewherein all the color-forming layers are carried on the same side of asubstrate as well as those wherein at least one color-forming layer iscarried on a first side of a substrate and at least one color-forminglayer is carried on a second side of the substrate.

A preferred tautomeric equilibrium of the present invention involvesproton transfer. As shown in FIG. 2, a molecule containing an acidic anda basic site can exist either in the protonated acid and unprotonatedbase tautomeric form, or in the unprotonated acid and protonated baseform. These two forms can have different colors if either the acidicsite or the basic site of the molecule constitute an indicator dye.Thus, the molecule might consist of a colorless, basic indicator dye(that becomes colored in the presence of an acid) covalently joined toan acid, or a colorless, acidic indicator dye (that becomes colored whendeprotonated) covalently joined to a base. Of course, the molecule mayalso consist of a basic indicator dye covalently joined to an acidicindicator dye. The strengths of the acidic and the basic sites must besuch that an equilibrium may be established that does not overwhelminglyfavor one of the two tautomers under most conditions. This is mosteasily achieved if the acid and the base are weak. An especiallypreferred acidic grouping is a phenol, while the basic site may varywidely, commonly being an electronegative heteroatom such as oxygen ornitrogen.

Preferred examples of tautomeric molecules of Type I of the presentinvention include the following xanthene derivatives. Two tautomericforms of the xanthene derivatives are shown (represented by formulae Iand II), but this is not meant to exclude additional tautomeric forms ofthe molecule. (It should be noted that only one of the possibletautomers of xanthene

molecules is sometimes reported in the literature.)

wherein R₁, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆, and R₈ are each independently hydrogen,alkyl, aryl, halogen, or substituted or unsubstituted oxygen, nitrogenor sulfur atoms;

R₂ is hydrogen, alkyl, aryl, or is absent;

R₇ is substituted or unsubstituted oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, or halogen;

R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ are each independently hydrogen, alkyl, aryl,halogen, nitro or substituted or unsubstituted oxygen, nitrogen orsulfur atoms, or absent;

X₁ is carbonyl, methylene, or sulfonyl;

X₂ is oxygen or nitrogen, substituted with hydrogen, alkyl, aryl, ornitrogen;

X₃ and X₄ are each independently oxygen, sulfur, or nitrogen; and

X₅ is carbon or nitrogen.

In these compounds, the acidic grouping of formula I comprises the groupX₄ bearing the hydrogen atom, and the basic site of formula I comprisesthe atom X₂. Transfer of a proton from X₄ to X₂ gives a compound offormula II.

One preferred subgroup of xanthenes of formula I are fluoresceincompounds, wherein X₄ is oxygen and R₇ is oxygen substituted withhydrogen, alkyl or aryl; and X₁ is carbonyl; X₂ is oxygen; and X₃ isoxygen.

Many fluorescein derivatives of the above subtype are known in the art.One tautomeric form (corresponding to formula I) of such compounds iscolorless (absorbing in the ultraviolet region of the electromagneticspectrum), whereas a second tautomeric form (corresponding to formulaII) is often yellow in color. Fluorescein itself is the compound offormula I, in which R₂ is absent, R₇ is a hydroxyl group, R₁, R₃, R₄,R₅, R₆, R₈, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁, and R₁₂ are each hydrogen atoms, X₁ iscarbonyl, X₂, X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen and X₅ is carbon. It has beenfound that there are difficulties with many of these prior artcompounds. Fluorescein itself is difficult to crystallize in a colorlessform and in the amorphous form exhibits complex equilibria includingseveral, differently colored species. A simplification may be made if R₇is an ether grouping. Thus, the previously known compound benzylfluorescein, in which the substituents are as described above forfluorescein itself except that R₇ is a benzyloxy group, is readilycrystallized into a colorless form. The amorphous form of benzylfluorescein has a yellow color.

Benzyl fluorescein has the disadvantage that only a small proportion ofthe amorphous form (about 4%) is colored (i.e., about 96% of theamorphous form is in the tautomeric form corresponding to formula I, andabout 4% in the structure corresponding to formula II). It has beenfound that much higher proportions of the colored tautomer in theamorphous form may be obtained when at least two of R₁, R₃, R₆ and R₈ informula I comprise an alkyl substituent, as described in more detail inExample 1 below.

Especially preferred fluorescein derivatives of the present inventionare derivatives of formula I in which at least two of R₁, R₃, R₆ and R₈comprise an alkyl group having between one and about twelve carbonatoms, which may be branched or linear, and which may comprise aryl orheteroatomic substituents, R₂ is absent, R₄, R₅, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂are each hydrogen, R₇ is an ether grouping, X₁ is a carbonyl group, X₂,X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen and X₅ is carbon.

Specific preferred compounds of formula I are those in which R₂ isabsent, R₄, R₅, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ are each hydrogen, X₁ is carbonyl,X₂, X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen, X₅ is carbon, and the other substituentsare as follows:

Compound F-1: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each n-hexyland R₇ is benzyloxy;

Compound F-2: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each n-hexyland R₇ is ethoxy;

Compound F-3: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each ethyl andR₇ is benzyloxy;

Compound F-4: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each n-hexyland R₇ is ethoxy;

Compound F-5: R₁ and R₈ are each methyl, R₃ and R₆ are each hydrogen andR₇ is benzyloxy;

Compound F-6: R₁ and R₈ are each methyl, R₃ and R₆ are each hydrogen andR₇ is 2-methoxyethoxy;

Compound F-7: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each ethyl andR₇ is 3-methylbut-1-oxy;

Compound F-8: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each ethyl andR₇ is 2-methylbenzyloxy;

Compound F-9: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each ethyl andR₇ is 3-methylbenzyloxyt;

Compound F-10: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each benzyland R₇ is benzyloxy;

Compound F-11: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each propyl,and R₇ is benzyloxy; and

Compound F-12: R₁ and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₃ and R₆ are each benzyland R₇ is 3-methylbut-1-oxy.

Certain of compounds F-1 through F-12 are novel compounds described andclaimed in commonly assigned United States patent application, serialno. ______, filed on even date herewith (Attorney Docket No. C-8586AFP),the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by referenceherein and made a part of this application.

A second preferred subgroup of xanthenes of formula I are rhodol-typecompounds, wherein X₄ is oxygen, R₂ is absent and R₇ is nitrogen bearingtwo substituents each of which may independently be hydrogen, alkyl oraryl; X₁ is carbonyl; and X₂, X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen.

Preferred compounds of the rhodol type are those in which R₁ ishydrogen, halogen, or alkyl; R₂ is absent; R₃ is an electron-withdrawingsubstituent such as halogen, sulfonyl or nitro; R₇ is nitrogen bearingat least one aryl substituent; R₄, R₅, R₆, R₈, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ areeach hydrogen; X₁ is carbonyl; X₂, X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen; and X₅ iscarbon. It has been found that rhodol-type compounds can afford goodmagenta (green-absorbing) chromophores provided that R₃ is anelectron-withdrawing substituent such as a halogen, sulfonyl or nitroand R₇ is nitrogen bearing at least one aryl substituent. Absent theelectron-withdrawing substituent at R₃, or the aryl substituent on thenitrogen atom at R₇, the wavelength of absorption is shorter, and thecolored tautomer of the molecule exhibits a red, rather than a magenta,color.

Specific preferred rhodol-type compounds of formula I are those in whichR₂ is absent; R₄, R₅, R₆, R₈, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ are each hydrogen; X₁is carbonyl; X₂, X₃ and X₄ are each oxygen; X₅ is carbon; and the othersubstituents are as follows:

Compound Rh-1: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ is phenylamino;

Compound Rh-2: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-ethyl-N-phenylamino;

Compound Rh-3: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-butyl-N-phenylamino;

Compound Rh-4: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-hexyl-N-phenylamino;

Compound Rh-5: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-benzyl-N-phenylamino;

Compound Rh-6: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN,N-diphenylamino;

Compound Rh-7: R₁ is methyl, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-hexyl-N-phenylamino;

Compound Rh-8: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is hydrogen and R₇ is N-indolinyl; and

Compound Rh-9: R₁ is hydrogen, R₃ is bromine and R₇ isN-hexadecyl-N-phenylamino.

Certain of the compounds Rh-1 through Rh-9 are novel compounds and aredescribed and claimed in commonly assigned United States patentapplication serial no. ______, filed on even date herewith (AttorneyDocket No. C-8588AFP), the entire disclosure of which is herebyincorporated by reference herein and made a part of this application.

A third preferred subgroup of xanthenes of formula I are rhodamine-typecompounds, in which R₁, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆, R₈, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ areeach hydrogen, alkyl, aryl or halogen, R₂ is hydrogen, alkyl or aryl andR₇ is nitrogen bearing two substituents each of which independently maybe hydrogen, alkyl or aryl, or oxygen bearing an alkyl or arylsubstituent; X₁ is carbonyl; X₂ is oxygen; X₃ is oxygen; X₄ is nitrogen;and X₅ is carbon.

Specific preferred rhodamine-type compounds of formula I are those inwhich R₁, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆, R₈, R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ are each hydrogen; X₁is carbonyl; X₂ and X₃ are each oxygen; X₄ is nitrogen; X₅ is carbon;and the other substituents are as follows:

Compound R-1: R₂ is phenyl and R₇ is phenylamino;

Compound R-2: R₂ is 2-methylphenyl and R₇ is 2-methylphenylamino;

Compound R-3: R₂ is 2-ethylphenyl and R₇ is 2-ethylphenylamino;

Compound R-4: R₂ is 2,4,6-trimethylphenyl and R₇ is,4,6-trimethylphenylamino;

Compound R-5: R₂ is 2-chlorophenyl and R₇ is 2-chlorophenylamino.

Another specific preferred rhodamine-type compound of formula I isCompound R-6, in which R₁, R₃, R₄, R₅, R₆, and R₈ are each hydrogen, R₂is a 2-methyl-4-octadecyloxyphenyl group, R₇ is an N-indolinyl group,R₉, R₁₀, R₁₁ and R₁₂ are each fluorine, X₁ is carbonyl, X₂ and X₃ areeach oxygen, X₄ is nitrogen, and X₅ is carbon.

Certain of the compounds R-1 through R-6 are novel compounds and aredescribed and claimed in commonly assigned United States patentapplication serial no. ______, filed on even date herewith (AttorneyDocket No. C-8587AFP), the entire disclosure of which is herebyincorporated by reference herein and made a part of this application.

Two problems commonly occur in designing molecules for use according tothe mechanism of Type I. Firstly, it may turn out to be impossible tocrystallize the colorless tautomeric form of the molecule. For example,many of the rhodol-type compounds described above cannot readily becrystallized in a colorless form. Secondly, the colorless form may beable to be crystallized, but may exhibit a non-ideal melting point. Tochange the melting point would require complete redesign of themolecule, a long and tedious process. However, as described in U.S. Pat.No. 4,097,288, it is well known that certain phenolic or amino compoundsreadily form co-crystals with hydrogen-bonding acceptors or donors. Suchhydrogen-bonding acceptors or donors are hereinafter referred to as“complexing agents”. A co-crystal of a given molecule of the presentinvention in conjunction with a hydrogen-bonding complexing agent doesnot necessarily have the same melting point as either the complexingagent or the molecule of the present invention on its own.

As mentioned above, in each of the preferred types of formula I, atom X₄bears a hydrogen substituent. This hydrogen atom, besides being theinternal acid used to produce the colored tautomeric form of themolecule, is also available to be complexed by a hydrogen-bondingacceptor. Complexation, as described above, not only may enablecrystallization of the colorless tautomeric form of the molecule incases where this would otherwise be difficult to achieve, but may alsoallow control of the melting point. Preferred complexing agents areamino compounds, especially heterocyclic materials such as pyridines.Specific preferred complexing agents include phenanthroline,2,9-dimethylphenanthroline, 4,5,6,7-tetramethylphenanthroline, methylpicolinate, ethyl picolinate, pyrazine, 4,4′-bispyridine,2,2′-bispyridine, terephthalamides such asN,N,N′,N′-tetramethylterephalamide and the corresponding tetrabutylderivative, and cyclic oxalamides such as1,4-dimethyl-2,3-dioxopiperazine. Example 4 below illustrates the effectof complexation to crystallize the colorless tautomeric form ofrhodol-type compounds used in the present invention and to tailor themelting point of these and other molecules of the present invention.

Novel complexes which are useful in the imaging members and methods ofthe invention are described and claimed in commonly assigned UnitedStates patent application serial no. ______, filed on even date herewith(Attorney Docket No. C-8589AFP), the entire disclosure of which ishereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of thisapplication.

The present invention is not limited to compounds that exist indifferent tautomeric forms. In a second embodiment of the invention,illustrated in FIG. 1, Type II, the equilibrium established is between acolorless adduct, shown as C, and its two constituents, shown as D andE. D is a colored dye, while E is a colorless molecule that can add to Dand render it colorless. Typically, D is a cationic dye (anelectrophile) and E is a nucleophile. During crystallization of C, theconcentration of E may be made sufficiently high (and much higher thanthat of D) that very little of D is present. When D is melted, however,the concentration of D and E will be the same. The position of theequilibrium may thus be different in the amorphous form resulting frommelting of C than it was in the solution from which C was crystallizedin the first place. FIG. 3 shows two examples of equilibria that can beused for Type II of the present invention. Scheme 1 of FIG. 3 shows theequilibrium between a hemicyanine dye and a colorless adduct formed byaddition of a tertiary amine. Scheme 2 shows a similar equilibriumestablished between a xanthene dye and a tertiary amine. A wide varietyof nucleophilic molecules may be used to establish equilibria such asthose shown in FIG. 3, but it is preferred that the adduct formedbetween the dye and the nucleophile have the same charge as the finaldye. If this is not the case, for example if the adduct is neutral butthe dye is positively charged, in order to maintain charge balance thenucleophile in the dissociated state must be negatively charged. In thiscase, it is likely that the nucleophile will remain closely associatedwith the dye due to electrostatic attraction. The adduct and the dyewill both be positively charged if the dye is positively charged and thenucleophile is a tertiary amine, a tertiary phosphine, or a thioether,for example.

To form a direct thermal imaging system, the crystalline, colorless formof the compound of Types I and II described above is made into adispersion in a solvent in which the compound is insoluble or onlysparingly soluble, by any of the methods known in the art for formingdispersions. Such methods include grinding, attriting, etc. Theparticular solvent chosen will depend upon the particular crystallinematerial. Solvents that may be used include water, organic solvents suchas hydrocarbons, esters, alcohols, ketones, nitrites, and organic halidesolvents such as chlorinated and fluorinated hydrocarbons. The dispersedcrystalline material may be combined with a binder, which may bepolymeric. Suitable binders include water-soluble polymers such aspoly(vinyl alcohol), poly(vinylpyrollidone) and cellulose derivatives,water-dispersed latices such as styrene/butadiene or poly(urethane)derivatives, or alternatively hydrocarbon-soluble polymers such aspolyethylene, polypropylene, copolymers of ethylene and norbornene, andpolystyrene. This list is not intended to be exhaustive, but is merelyintended to indicate the breadth of choice available for the polymericbinder. The binder may be dissolved or dispersed in the solvent.

Following preparation of the dispersion of the compound of the presentinvention, and optional addition of a polymeric binder, the resultantfluid is coated onto a substrate using any of the techniques well-knownin the coating art. These include slot, gravure, Mayer rod, roll,cascade, spray, and curtain coating techniques. The image-forming layerso formed is optionally overcoated with a protective layer or layers.

Where materials of the present invention are used to prepare an imagingmedium of the type described in copending U.S. patent application Ser.No. 10/151,432 filed May 20, 2002 the process described above isfollowed for each of the imaging layers. Successive layers may be coatedsequentially, in tandem, or in a combination of sequential and tandemcoatings.

EXAMPLES

The invention will now be described further in detail with respect tospecific embodiments by way of examples, it being understood that theseare intended to be illustrative only and the invention is not limited tothe materials, amounts, procedures and process parameters, etc. recitedtherein. All parts and percentages recited are by weight unlessotherwise specified.

Example 1

This example describes the preparation and properties of novelfluorescein derivatives of formula I.

A. Novel fluorescein derivatives were prepared in the following generalmanner (exemplified by the preparation of Compound F-11).

Preparation of 4-Propyl-1,3-Dihydroxybenzene.

i. 1,3-Dihydroxy-4-propanoylbenzene (10 g; 60.2 mmol) andtrifluoroacetic acid (10 eq., 0.6 mol; 68.4 g) were stirred at roomtemperature until all the material was dissolved. To the resultantsolution there was added triethylsilane (2.5 eq., 0.15 mol; 17.5 g)slowly at room temperature. After the addition, the reaction mixture wasstirred with heating at 75° C. for 4 hours. The mixture was cooled toroom temperature, quenched into water and extracted with dichloromethaneto give two layers of oil product. The upper layer (excesstriethylsilane) was decanted off and to the residual oil product therewas added a mixture of hexane and dichloromethane (ca. 7:3 ratio) withheating to give a solid product. The product (7.3 g; 80% yield), whosestructure was confirmed by ¹H NMR and Electrospray mass spectrometry (ESMS) was used for the next step without further purification.

ii. Preparation of 2,7-Dipropylfluorescein.

To a mixture of 4-propyl-1,3-dihydroxybenzene (6.0 g; 40 mmol, preparedas described in (i) above) and phthalic anhydride (20 mmol; 3.0 g) therewas added 73% (w/w) concentrated sulfuric acid at room temperature andthe mixture was then stirred with heating at 150° C. for 3 hours. Aftercooling, the mixture was poured into water (200 mL) with stirring in thebeaker, filtered, and washed with water several times to give yellowproduct with a quantitative yield. The structure of the product wasconfirmed by ¹H NMR and ES MS.

iii. Preparation of Compound F-11.

2, 7-Dipropylfluorescein (3 g; 7.2 mmol, prepared as described in (ii)above) and anhydrous potassium carbonate (4 eq., 28.8 mmol) weredispersed in dimethylformamide (DMF, 35 mL) at room temperature and themixture was then stirred with heating at 100° C. until reddish clearsolution appeared. To the resultant solution was added benzyl bromide (4eq., 28.8 mmol; 4.9 g) dissolved in DMF (5 mL) slowly for 10 min. Afterthe addition had been completed the mixture was further stirred at 100°C. for another 3 hours. After cooling the mixture to room temperature itwas poured into water (400 mL) to give a precipitate. The crude product(monoether, monoester) was hydrolyzed without further purification. Themonoether monoester product was dissolved in a mixture of acetone (60mL) and water (20 mL) and to this solution there was added aqueoussodium hydroxide (4 eq., 28.8 mmol; 1.2 g; 12 mL a 10% aqueoussolution). The mixture was stirred at room temperature overnight. Afterevaporation of acetone the mixture was diluted with water (200 mL) andfiltered. The filtrate was neutralized with dilute hydrochloric acid togive pale yellow precipitate. The crude product was purified by silicagel column chromatography (eluted with 3% methanol in dichloromethane)followed by recrystalization from a mixture of hexane and acetone togive colorless crystals (1.75 g, 48% yields mp 202-203° C.).

B. The fluorescein derivatives so prepared, having structures describedhereinabove, exhibited the following properties: Color Melting MeltingCompound of melt point (° C.) Range (° C.) F-1 Yellow 111* — F-2 Yellow225* — F-3 Yellow 230* — F-4 Yellow 107 7.2 F-5 Orange 220* — F-6 Orange251 5.4 F-7 Yellow 194 5.0 F-8 Yellow 115* — F-9 Yellow 160* — F-10Yellow 219 4.6 F-11 Yellow 210 5.3 F-12 Yellow 207 4.6Unless indicated by (*), melting points were determined by differentialscanning calorimetry (DSC) at a temperature ramp rate of 4° C./min.*Indicates that melting points were obtained using a capillary meltingpoint apparatus.

Example 2

This example describes the preparation of novel rhodol-type derivativesof the invention Derivatives Rh-1-Rh-7 were prepared in the followinggeneral manner (exemplified by Rh-7

ia. Preparation of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid(starting material for Rh-1-Rh-6 and Rh-9).

Aluminum chloride (8.48 g, 64 mmol) was added to a stirring suspensionof phthalic anhydride (2.36 g, 16 mmol) in tetrachloroethane (40 mL)under nitrogen. Nitromethane (6 mL) was added to dissolve the reactants.4-Bromoresorcinol (3 g, 16 mmol) was added and the mixture continued tostir under nitrogen. The reaction was monitored by high performanceliquid chromatography (HPLC) over a period of 2 hours. It was observedthat the reaction had ceased within the first 30 minutes, with startingmaterials remaining. The solution was diluted with ethyl acetate (˜150mL) and washed with 1 M hydrochloric acid (2×100 mL). The product wasextracted from the organic layer into a saturated solution of sodiumbicarbonate in water (200 mL). The basic aqueous phase was acidifiedwith 3M hydrochloric acid to a pH of 5. The product was extracted fromthe aqueous phase into ethyl acetate (150 mL), washed with brine (2×100mL), dried over magnesium sulfate and concentrated to give an orange oilwhich solidified upon standing for about 10 minutes. The solid wasslurried in dichloromethane (20 mL) and filtered to give a mixture ofthe desired product and phthalic acid. Slurrying in water (20 mL)followed by filtration gave the desired product as a beige powder (1.72g, 5.1 mmol, 32% yield).

ib. Alternative preparation, illustrated for2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxy-3-methylbenzoyl)benzoic acid (starting materialfor Rh-7).

Step 1: Aluminum chloride (21.4 g, 161 mmol) was added to a stirringsuspension of phthalic anhydride (6 g, 40 mmol) in tetrachloroethane(200 mL) under nitrogen. 1,3-Dihydroxy-2-methylbenzene(5 g, 40 mmol) wasadded and the mixture quickly thickened. After the precipitates werebroken up with a spatula the reaction continued for 1 hour. The solutionwas diluted with ethyl acetate (˜600 mL) and washed with 1 Mhydrochloric acid (2×200 mL). The product was extracted from the organiclayer into a saturated solution of sodium bicarbonate in water (600 mL).The basic aqueous phase was acidified with 3M hydrochloric acid to a pHof 5. The product was extracted from the aqueous phase into ethylacetate (400 mL), washed with brine (2×100 mL), dried over magnesiumsulfate and concentrated to give a brownish solid. The solid wasslurried in dichloromethane (20 mL) and filtered to give2-(2,4-dihydroxy-3-methylbenzoyl)benzoic acid as an off white powder(4.6 g, 16.9 mmol, 42% yield).

Step 2: Bromine (2.6 g, 16.9 mmol) was dripped into a stirring solutionof the product from Step 1 (4.6 g=16.9 mmol) dissolved in acetic acid(42 mL). Monitoring by HPLC showed complete bromination within 1 hour.The solution was concentrated to give a yellow powder. Slurrying indichloromethane followed by filtration gave the desired product as anoff white powder (5 g, 14.3 mmol, 85% yield).

ii. Preparation of Compound Rh-7.

2-(5-Bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid (prepared as described inia above, 1 g, 2.86 mmol) was dissolved in acetic acid (14 mL).N-hexyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine (0.77 g, 2.86 mmol) was added tothe solution followed by methanesulfonic acid (8.58 mmol). The solutionwas stirred at reflux for 4 hours. The solution was diluted with ethylacetate (100 mL), washed with water (2×50 mL), a pH 7 phosphate buffer(2×30 mL) and brine (2×30 mL), dried over anhydrous magnesium sulfateand concentrated to a dark purple solid. Purification by silica gelcolumn chromatography eluted the product with 5% acetone indichloromethane (0.75 g, 1.28 mmol, 45% yield, λ_(max)=548 nm). Thestructure of the product was confirmed by ¹H NMR and ES MS.

Other rhodol derivates were prepared in an analogous manner:

Rh-1: 3.08 g of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 1.69 gof 3-hydroxydiphenylamine afford 3.45 g (76% yield) of Compound Rh-1.

Rh-2: 1.5 g of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 1.0 g ofN-ethyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 1.78 g(77% yield) of Compound Rh-2.

Rh-3: 418 mg of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 300 mgof N-butyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 401 mg(59% yield) of Compound Rh-3.

Rh-4: 1.0 g of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 0.83 gof N-hexyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 1.2 g(71% yield) of Compound Rh-4.

Rh-5: 413 mg of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 340 mgof N-benzyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 343 mg(59% yield) of Compound Rh-5.

Rh-6: 2-(5-Bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid andN-phenyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 0.410 gms(15% yield) of Compound Rh-6 (λ_(max)=542 nm).

Rh-9: 467 mg of 2-(5-bromo-2,4-dihydroxybenzoyl)benzoic acid and 480 mgof N-hexadecyl-N-(3-hydroxyphenyl)phenylamine were reacted to afford 435mg (44% yield) of Compound Rh-9.

Example 3

This example describes the preparation and properties of novelrhodamine-type derivatives. General procedure (exemplified for CompoundR-2):

A mixture of dichlorofluoran (5.55 g, 15 mmol), o-toluidine (5.2 g, 48mmol), anhydrous zinc chloride (4.5 g) and zinc oxide (1.5 g) wasstirred at 200° C. for 1.5 hours. The still-hot reaction mixture wasthen quenched with stirring into 8% hydrochloric acid solution (300 mL)and stirred at 90° C. for 30 minutes, then filtered. The filter cake waswashed with water (100 mL), dried, and dissolved in warm methanol (100mL). The solution was made basic by addition of a solution ofconcentrated ammonia solution (7 mL) in methanol (15 mL), then quenchedwith stirring into cold water (700 mL). The slurry was filtered, and thefilter cake was washed with water (150 mL) and dried overnight underreduced pressure to give a dark purple solid (22 g). This material wastriturated with hot methylene chloride (100 mL) and filtered. Thefiltrate was purified by column chromatography on silica gel withdichloromethane/methanol as eluant. The slightly impure resultingmaterial was further purified by recrystallization from toluene to givepale purple prisms (2.6 g). The solids from the dichloromethanetrituration were heated with refluxing toluene (25 mL), filtered hot,diluted with heptane (20 mL), cooled to 20° C., and filtered to give afurther 1.2 g of pale purple prisms. The residual solids from thetoluene hot filtration were taken up in refluxing xylenes (15 mL) andcooled to deposit an additional 1.0 g of pale purple solid.

Compounds R1-R5 exhibited the following properties. In most cases,solvent of crystallization was incorporated into the crystals. Solventof Melting point λ_(max) Compound crystallization (capillary, ° C.)(methanol, nm) R1 None 268 544 R2 Toluene 170 526 R2 Dichloromethane 147526 R3 Dichloromethane 117 526 R4 Dichloromethane 184 522 R5 Toluene 122520

Example 4

This example describes the preparation and properties of complexedmaterials.

General Procedure A:

The complexing agent (1.0 or 0.5 equivalents) was combined with thecolor forming agent and dissolved in an appropriate blend of hot methylethyl ketone and cyclohexane. When successful, the complex crystallizedfrom the hot solution as it cooled as colorless or nearly colorlesscrystals. The crystals were collected by suction filtration and washedwith an appropriate blend of methyl ethyl ketone/cyclohexane. This washmust be carefully done to avoid the precipitation of colored materialson the surface of the crystals. Analysis by ¹H NMR spectroscopy definedthe composition of the complex. Integral ratios of 1:1 and 2:1 of dye tocomplexing agent were most commonly observed and depended both on thestructure of the dye and the structure of the complexing agent.

General Procedure B:

The complexing agent (1.0 or 0.5 equivalents) and color forming agentwere combined and ground with an agate mortar and pestle. The resultingintimate mixture was then slurried on the mortar in a small amount ofcyclohexane and the grinding was continued. Small amounts of methylethyl ketone were then added to facilitate dissolution of the componentsinto the solvent and aid crystal growth. The grinding was continueduntil a colorless complex was formed. Often the stronger solvent (methylethyl ketone) was allowed to slowly evaporate during the grindingprocess until a critical concentration was achieved. At this pointcrystallization often proceeded. Once crystallization had occurredadditional cyclohexane/methyl ethyl ketone was added and the slurry ofcrystals was transferred either to a container for further ripening(heating and stirring) or directly collected by suction filtration. Thecrystals were then carefully washed with an appropriate mixture ofcyclohexane/methyl ethyl ketone to avoid precipitating colored dye onthe surface of the crystals. Crystals from this procedure could be usedto seed crystallizations using procedure A. m.p. Dye Complexing AgentProcedure Ratio (DSC, ° C.) Benzylfluorescein 1,10- A 1:1 201phenanthroline Benzylfluorescein 2,9-Dimethyl- A 1:1 185 1,10-phenanthroline Benzylfluorescein 4,4′-bipyridyl A 2:1 109Benzylfluorescein Pyrazine A 1:1 125* Benzylfluorescein EthylpicolinateA 1:1 138 F-3 4,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 191 F-4 4,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 215 F-94,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 165 F-10 4,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 198 Rh-12,9-Dimethyl- A 1:2 244* 1,10- phenanthroline Rh-1 4,4′-bipyridyl A 1:1187 Rh-2 4,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 210 Rh-4 2,9-Dimethyl- A 1:1 109 1,10-phenanthroline Rh-4 2,9-Dimethyl- B 1:1 108 1,10- phenanthroline Rh-44,4′-bipyridyl B 160 Rh-6 4,4′-bipyridyl B 2:1 260 Rh-8 4,4′-bipyridyl A2:1 180 Rh-8 2,9-Dimethyl- A 1:1 142 1,10- phenanthroline Rh-8 CyclicOxalamide A 1:2 145(*indicates capillary melting point.)

Example 5

This example illustrates thermal imaging members and thermal imagingmethods according to the invention. The thermal imaging members provideyellow (imaging members 5A and 5B) and magenta (imaging member 5C)colors.

The following materials were used in this example:

Topas 8007, a copolymer of ethylene and norbornene, available fromTicona, 90 Morris Avenue, Summit, N.J. 07901;

Airvol 540, a grade of poly(vinyl alcohol) available from Air Productsand Chemicals, Inc., Allentown, Pa.;

Zonyl FSA, a surfactant, available from DuPont Corporation, Wilmington,Del.;

Hymicron ZK-349, a grade of zinc stearate available from CytechProducts, Inc., Elizabethtown, Ky.;

Klebosol 30V-25, a silica dispersion available from ClariantCorporation, Muttenz, Switzerland;

Glyoxal, available from Aldrich Chemical Co., Milwaukee, Wis.;

Melinex 534, a white poly(ethylene terephthalate) film base ofapproximately 96 microns' thickness, available from DuPont Teijin FilmsU.S. Limited Partnership, 1 Discover Drive, P.O. Box 411, Hopewell, Va.

A. An image-forming layer was prepared as follows:

A compound of the present invention (0.15 g) was dispersed in a mixturecomprising Topas 8007 (0.15 g of a 10% solution in methylcyclohexane)and methylcyclohexane (1.2 g), using an attriter equipped with glassbeads, stirred for 18 hours at room temperature. The total solid contentof the resulting dispersion was 11%.

The above dispersion was used to make the coating fluid for thedye-forming layer in proportions stated below. The coating compositionthus prepared was coated onto Melinex 534 using a #18 Mayer rod, anddried. The intended coating thickness was 3.9 microns. Ingredient %solids in dried film Dispersion 1.5 g 10% Topas 8007/methylcyclohexane0.493 g Methylcyclohexane 0.15 g

B. A barrier layer was coated onto the imaging layer by applying a 10%solution of Topas 8007 in methylcyclohexane using a #12 Mayer rod, foran intended thickness of approximately 2.6 microns.

C. A slip overcoat was coated on the barrier layer. The overcoat wasprepared in proportions stated below. The overcoat coating compositionapplied using a #18 Mayer rod for an intended thickness of 1.6 microns.Ingredient % solids in dried film Glyoxal 9.59% Hymicron ZK-349 31.42%Klebosol 30V-25 23.53% Zonyl FSA 3.89% Airvol 540 31.57%

The resulting imaging member was printed using a laboratory test-bedprinter equipped with a thermal head, model KYT106-12PAN13 (KyoceraCorporation, 6 Takedatobadono-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan).

The following printing parameters were used:

Printhead width: 4 inches

Pixels per inch: 300

Resistor size: 70×80 microns

Resistance: 4047 Ohm

Line Speed: 7 milliseconds per line

Pressure: 1.5-2 lb/linear inch

Dot pattern: Rectangular grid.

The following results were obtained from imaging members prepared using:

Imaging Member 5A: benzyl fluorescein (mp 191° C.);

Imaging Member 5B: a novel fluorescein compound of the present invention(F-11, mp 210° C.); and

Imaging Member 5C: a novel complex of the present invention preparedfrom the novel rhodol-type compound Rh-4 and2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline (mp 109° C.). Imaging Member 5A Voltage= 14 V Density Voltage = 16 V Density Energy (J/cm²) (blue) Energy(J/cm²) (blue) 4.01 0.07 5.24 0.51 3.61 0.06 4.72 0.31 3.21 0.04 4.190.15 2.81 0.04 3.67 0.08 2.41 0.01 3.14 0.07 2.01 0.04 2.62 0.04 1.610.04 2.10 0.04 1.20 0.04 1.57 0.04 0.80 0.04 1.05 0.04 0.40 0.04 0.520.04 0.00 0.04 0.00 0.04

Imaging Member 5B Voltage = 14 V Density Voltage = 16 V Density Energy(J/cm²) (blue) Energy (J/cm²) (blue) 4.01 0.13 5.24 1.1 3.61 0.1 4.721.03 3.21 0.08 4.19 0.71 2.81 0.08 3.67 0.42 2.41 0.07 3.14 0.16 2.010.07 2.62 0.1 1.61 0.07 2.10 0.07 1.20 0.07 1.57 0.06 0.80 0.07 1.050.07 0.40 0.07 0.52 0.06 0.00 0.06 0.00 0.06

Imaging Member 5C Voltage = 14 V Density Voltage = 16 V Density Energy(J/cm²) (green) Energy (J/cm²) (green) 4.01 0.67 5.24 0.51 3.61 0.484.72 0.48 3.21 0.52 4.19 0.7 2.81 0.42 3.67 0.47 2.41 0.28 3.14 0.532.01 0.19 2.62 0.34 1.61 0.11 2.10 0.29 1.20 0.1 1.57 0.17 0.80 0.1 1.050.09 0.40 0.09 0.52 0.08 0.00 0.09 0.00 0.09

The following conclusions may be drawn:

a. The density with no printing energy applied was, for the threeimaging members, 0.04, 0.06 and 0.09, indicating that the unmeltedcrystalline dispersions coated to form the color-forming layer wereinitially substantially colorless;

b. The maximum densities achieved for the three imaging members were,respectively, 0.51, 1.1 and 0.7. As described above, the only activecomponents in the three color-forming layers were benzyl fluorescein,F-11, and the complex formed between Rh-4 and2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline, respectively. No developers or otherchemical adjuvants were present. Therefore, the color formed must havearisen through intrinsic color change of these materials.

c. For imaging members A and B, whose melting points were 191° C. and210° C., respectively, imaging occurred when 16V was applied to theprint head whereas very little color change was observed with 14 Vapplied. On the other hand, for imaging member C, with melting point109° C., substantial color change was observed under both 16V and 14Vprinting conditions. The amount of energy applied during printing at 14Vis lower than that applied while printing at 16V, and consequently thetemperature achieved in the color-forming layer is lower for 14Vprinting than for 16 V printing. Whether or not color is formed cantherefore be concluded to depend upon the melting point of thecolor-forming layer and the temperature of heating.

d. The maximum density achieved in Imaging Member A (0.51) is lower thanthat achieved in Imaging Member B (1.1). Imaging Member A comprisesbenzyl fluorescein, a known compound, whereas Imaging Member B comprisesF-11, a preferred, novel, fluorescein derivative of the invention.

Example 6

This example illustrates a thermal imaging member and thermal imagingmethod according to the invention. The thermal imaging member provides acyan color.

In addition to the materials described in Example 5 above, the followingmaterials were used in this example:

Piccotac 1115, available from Eastman Chemical Company, 100 NorthEastman Road, P.O. Box 511, Kingsport, Tenn.;

Melinex 6265, a white poly(ethylene terephthalate) film base ofapproximately 96 microns' thickness, available from DuPont Teijin FilmsU.S. Limited Partnership, 1 Discover Drive, P.O. Box 411, Hopewell, Va.

A. An image-forming layer was prepared as follows:

Compound R-6 of the present invention (0.08 g) was dispersed in amixture comprising Topas 8007/Piccotac 1115 (ratio 1:1.25, 0.08 g of a10% solution in methylcyclohexane) and methylcyclohexane (0.76 g), usingan attriter equipped with glass beads, and stirred for 18 hours at roomtemperature. The total solid content of the resulting dispersion was10%.

The above dispersion was used to make the coating fluid for thedye-forming layer in proportions stated below. The coating compositionthus prepared was coated onto Melinex 6265 using a #9 Mayer rod, anddried. The intended coating thickness was approximately 2 microns.Ingredient % solids in dried film Dispersion 0.93 g 10% Topas8007:Piccotac 1.63 g 1115/methylcyclohexane Methylcyclohexane 0.09 g

B. A barrier layer was coated onto the imaging layer by applying a 10%solution of 1:1.25 Topas 8007/Piccotac 1115 in methylcyclohexane using a#12 Mayer rod, for an intended thickness of approximately 2.6 microns.

C. A slip overcoat was coated on the barrier layer. The overcoat wasprepared in proportions stated below. The overcoat coating compositionapplied using a #18 Mayer rod for an intended thickness of 1.6 microns.Ingredient % solids in dried film Glyoxal 9.59% Hymicron ZK-349 31.42%Klebosol 30V-25 23.53% Zonyl FSA 3.89% Airvol 540 31.57%

The resulting imaging member was printed using a laboratory test-bedprinter equipped with a thermal head, model KYT106-12PAN13 (KyoceraCorporation, 6 Takedatobadono-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan). Thefollowing printing parameters were used:

Printhead width: 4 inches

Pixels per inch: 300

Resistor size: 70×80 microns

Resistance: 4291 Ohm

Line Speed: 7 milliseconds per line

Pressure: 1.5-2 lb/linear inch

Dot pattern: Rectangular grid.

The following results were obtained: Voltage = 16.5 V Energy (J/cm²)Density (red) 5.88 1.13 5.29 1.10 4.71 1.05 4.12 0.79 3.53 0.52 2.940.30 2.35 0.14 1.76 0.1 1.18 0.1 0.59 0.1 0.00 0.1

Example 7

This example illustrates a thermal imaging member comprising more thanone color-forming layer, designed to be printed with a single thermalprint-head as described in above-mentioned patent application Ser. No.10/151,432. In this example the topmost layer, printed in a relativelyshort time at a relatively high temperature, comprises a material of thepresent invention. The lower layer, printed in a relatively long time ata relatively low temperature, comprises a prior art color-formingcomposition in which two compounds (a leuco dye and an acid developer)that react together to form color are brought together by melting anddiffusing.

In addition to materials described in Examples 5 and 6 above, thefollowing materials were used in this Example:

Leuco dye Red 40, 3,3-bis(1-n-butyl-2-methyl-indol-3-yl)phthalide(available from Yamamoto Chemical Industry Co., Ltd., Wakayama, Japan);

Acid Developer TGSA, bis(3-allyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)sulfone, available fromNippon Kayaku Co., Ltd, Tokyo, Japan;

Airvol 205, a grade of poly(vinyl alcohol) available from Air Productsand Chemicals, Inc., Allentown, Pa.;

Airvol 325, a grade of poly(vinyl alcohol) available from Air. Productsand Chemicals, Inc., Allentown, Pa.;

Zonyl FSN, a surfactant, available from DuPont Corporation, Wilmington,Del.;

Elvacite 2045, a grade of poly(isobutyl methacrylate), available fromLucite International Inc., 7275 Goodlett Farms Parkway, Cordova, Tenn.;

Aerosol OT-100, a surfactant available from Cytec Industries, Inc., WestPaterson, N.J.

A white, reflective layer was coated onto the back of a clearpoly(ethylene terephthalate) substrate of 125 micron thickness (Cronar512, available DuPont Teijin Films U.S. Limited Partnership, 1 DiscoverDrive, P.O. Box 411, Hopewell, Va.). The following layers were appliedto the opposite side of the substrate:

A. Prior Art Color-Forming Layer, Affording a Magenta Color.

An aqueous dispersion of a magenta color-former (Red 40), poly(vinylalcohol) (Airvol 205) and a surfactant (Zonyl FSN) was mixed with anaqueous dispersion of an acid developer (TGSA), poly(vinyl alcohol)(Airvol 205) and a surfactant (Zonyl FSN). A solution of poly(vinylalcohol) binder (Airvol 540) in water was added and the resultant fluidwas coated for a dried coverage of Red 40: 300 mg/m, TGSA 1139 mg/m²,Zonyl FSN 13 mg/m², and combined poly(vinyl alcohol) (Airvol 205 andAirvol 540) 661 mg/m².

B. A Thermally-Insulating Interlayer. A solution of Elvacite 2045 inmethylcyclohexane was coated to a dried coverage of 8016 mg/m².

C. Yellow Color-Forming Layer of the Present Invention.

A dispersion of Compound F-11 of the present invention was prepared asfollows:

Compound F-11 (600 g), surfactant Aerosol OT-100 (30 g), heptanes (1.1kg) and ethyl acetate (600 g) were combined and transferred into a1S-Attritor containing 6.3 kg mullite beads. The jacket temperature wasset to 10° C. and the attritor was run at 100 rpm for 24 hours. Thegrinding media was filtered off and washed with heptanes (500 g). Theresulting suspension of crystalline Compound F-11 was concentrated todryness yielding 620 g of white solid. This solid was redispersed in anaqueous solution of poly(vinyl alcohol) (Airvol 540) containing asurfactant (Zonyl FSN) to produce a coating fluid, which was coated to adried coverage of Compound F-11: 1184 mg/m², Aerosol OT-100: 59.2 mg/m²,Airvol 540: 344 mg/m², and Zonyl FSN 11 mg/m².

D. An Oxygen Barrier Layer.

The following materials were coated from aqueous solution to give theindicated dried coverages: poly(vinyl alcohol) (Airvol 325, 1454 mg/m²),boric acid crosslinker (125 mg/m²) and Zonyl FSN (32 mg/m²).

E. A UV-Absorbing Barrier Layer.

An aqueous fluid was coated to provide the following dried coverages:nanoparticulate zinc oxide (UV absorber, 2153 mg/m²), poly(vinylalcohol) (Airvol 325, 1615 mg/m²), Zonyl FSN (32 mg/m²).

F. A Slip Coat.

An aqueous coating fluid was coated to give the following driedcoverages: Hymicron ZK-349 (312 32 mg/m²), Airvol 540 (635 32 mg/m²),Klebosol 30V-25 (517 32 mg/m²) and Zonyl FSN (32 32 mg/m²).

The resulting imaging member was printed using a laboratory test-bedprinter equipped with a thermal head, model KPT163 (Kyocera Corporation,6 Takedatobadono-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan). The following printingparameters were used:

Pixels per inch: 300

Resistor size: 70×120 microns

Resistance: 3135 Ohm

Line Speed: 11.1 milliseconds per line

Pressure: 1.5-2 lb/linear inch

Voltage: 40.9 V

Dot pattern: Rectangular grid.

The time taken to print each line was divided into 667 equal timeelements. Energy was supplied to the print head for a proportion of eachof these time elements referred to as the “duty cycle”. For high averagepower in printing, the duty cycle was a high proportion of the totalduration of the time element, while for low average power the duty cyclewas a low proportion of the total duration of the time element. Becauseof both the time taken for thermal diffusion and the large size of theresistor relative to the distance traveled by the imaging element duringeach time element, the thermal pulses of each of the time elements werenot resolved as individual dots on the imaging element. Instead, theimaging element experienced an averaging of the power of the individualpulses.

The following results were obtained: High power, short time Duty cycle =0.74 Time elements energised Density Density (667 maximum) (blue)(Green) 0 0.155 0.17 16 0.195 0.172 18 0.259 0.18 20 0.399 0.202 230.621 0.239 25 0.799 0.277 27 0.936 0.306 29 1.095 0.343 32 1.221 0.38634 1.30 0.433 36 1.326 0.425

Low power, long time Duty cycle = 0.08 Time elements energised DensityDensity (667 maximum) (blue) (Green) 0 0.156 0.173 250 0.187 0.192 2920.205 0.225 335 0.226 0.303 377 0.266 0.467 419 0.33 0.725 462 0.4181.065 504 0.518 1.361 546 0.627 1.597 589 0.69 1.679 631 0.693 1.703

It is readily apparent that in the high power, short time printingcondition the blue density exceeds the green density (i.e., the yellowcolor predominates over the magenta color). In the low power, long timeprinting condition the green density exceeds the blue density (i.e., themagenta color predominates over the yellow color). The unwanted greendensity observed when printing yellow is mostly due to absorption ofgreen light by the yellow dye. Likewise, the unwanted blue densityobserved while printing the magenta dye is mostly due to absorption ofblue light by the magenta dye. Thus, Compound F-11 of the presentinvention can serve efficiently as an element in a thermal imagingmember comprising more than one color-forming layer, designed to beprinted with a single thermal print-head as described in above-mentionedpatent application Ser. No. 10/151,432.

Example 8

This example illustrates the time-independence of the color-formingtemperature of a thermal imaging member according to the invention.

The color-forming layer of Imaging Member A described in Example 5 abovewas subjected to heating using a thermal pressure laminator/sealeravailable from Sencorp Equipment, Hyannis, Mass. This device allows forthe independent control of the time and temperature of heating of asample. The optical densities (blue) obtained were as follows:Temperature Time (seconds) (° C.) 0.01 .1 1 10 90 188 .49 .59 .47 — —182 .35 .58 .55 — .28 177 .36 .29 .35 .41 .19 166 .11 .08 .09 .08 .18160 .04 .06 .04 .05 .07

It can be seen that over about four orders of magnitude in heating time,color change occurred between nominal 160 and nominal 177° C.

Although the invention has been described in detail with respect tovarious preferred embodiments thereof, it will be recognized by thoseskilled in the art that the invention is not limited thereto but ratherthat variations and modifications can be made therein which are withinthe spirit of the invention and the scope of the amended claims.

1-25. (canceled)
 26. A color imaging method comprising the steps of: (a)providing a color imaging member comprising a substrate bearing one ormore color-forming layers, wherein at least one of said color-forminglayers comprises a chemical compound in a crystalline form, saidcrystalline form being capable of being converted to an amorphous form,said chemical compound having intrinsically a different color in saidcrystalline form than in said amorphous form; and (b) converting atleast a portion of said chemical compound to an amorphous form in animagewise pattern by heating with a laser, whereby an image is formed.27. The method as defined in claim 26 wherein said imaging memberincludes at least two color-forming layers whereby a multicolor image isformed.
 28. The method as defined in claim 27 wherein a firstcolor-forming layer comprises a first chemical compound in a crystallineform and a second color-forming layer comprises a second chemicalcompound in a crystalline form, said crystalline forms of said first andsecond chemical compounds being capable of being converted to amorphousforms, said first and second chemical compounds having intrinsicallydifferent colors in said crystalline forms than in said amorphous forms.29. The method as defined in claim 26 wherein said imaging memberincludes three color-forming layers whereby a multicolor image isformed.
 30. The method as defined in claim 29 wherein said color-forminglayers form cyan, magenta and yellow, respectively.
 31. The method asdefined in claim 29 wherein a first color-forming layer comprises afirst chemical compound in a crystalline form, a second color-forminglayer comprises a second chemical compound in a crystalline form, and athird color-forming layer comprises a third chemical compound in acrystalline form, said crystalline forms of said first, second and thirdchemical compounds being capable of being converted to amorphous forms,said first, second and third chemical compounds having intrinsicallydifferent colors in said crystalline forms than in said amorphous forms.32. The method as defined in claim 26 wherein said color-forming layersare initially colorless.
 33. The method as defined in claim 26 whereinsaid color-forming layer comprising said chemical compound is initiallycolorless.
 34. The method as defined in claim 26 wherein the meltingpoint of said chemical compound in said crystalline form is betweenabout 60° C. and about 300° C.
 35. The method as defined in claim 26wherein the range of temperatures over which said chemical compound insaid crystalline form melts is less than about 15° C.
 36. The method asdefined in claim 26 wherein the Tg of the amorphous form of saidchemical compound is about 50° C. or greater.